20 Years Later: A Chat with A.G. Gaston Conference Founders Bob Dickerson & Gaynell Adams Jackson
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| Bob Dickerson Jr. |
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| Gaynelle Adams Jackson |
Birmingham, Ala. - Like thousands of African-Americans across the country, Bob Dickerson and Gaynelle Adams Jackson have long admired the incredible contributions of the late A.G. Gaston, who amassed a business empire that led Black Enterprise magazine to name him its Entrepreneur of the 20th Century.
Dickerson, executive director of the Birmingham Business Resource Center, previously worked for Gaston as a loan officer at Citizens Federal Savings Bank. Jackson, owner of Advanced Planning Services, passed by several of Gaston’s business enterprises daily while working downtown for Bell South.
In 2005, nine years after Gaston died at age 103, the two longtime friends decided
to combine their skills and create an annual business conference that would pay
tribute to Gaston’s success and inspire current and future black business leaders.
Now in its 20th year, the A.G. Gaston Conference has grown beyond their initial vision – just as Dr. Gaston diversified his business enterprise that started over a century ago in the 1920s by specialized on filling a need for burial insurance to blacks shunned by white companies.
Over the next half century, Gaston developed over a half-dozen other companies, overcoming racist Jim Crow laws and other forms of bigotry. Gaston displayed business acumen and a work ethic that enabled him to overcome the limitations set by racist laws.
During a chat, Dickerson and Jackson shared the vision behind the A.G. Gaston Conference and how it has evolved 20 years later. They also shared how Gaston’s business smarts are still needed by Black entrepreneurs in today’s business environment
BPL: What gave you the vision to start a conference honoring Dr. A. G. Gaston?
Dickerson: I attribute many of my opportunities to the fact that I worked at Citizens Federal Savings Bank. I revived my banking career, was given some latitude to do things like help start the Birmingham Association of Urban Bankers which gave me access to bank executives and community leaders including Birmingham Mayor Dr. Richard Arrington.
I also received recognition from Gaston inside the bank, got promoted, participated in board meetings and I was allowed to hone my leadership skills. So, naturally, I wanted to pay homage to a man who, because he was a successful business owner and hired me, and likely without knowing it, helped propel my career. So, when he passed away, I began to first dream and then plan what has become the A G Gaston Conference.
Jackson: Bob wanted to do something to honor Dr. Gaston and his legacy of business success and social justice. And I was committed to promoting the growth for small and microbusinesses. The AG Gaston Conference is the result of combining our two commitments.
As we planned our first conference, we strived to:
· Bring to the forefront, the plight of Black businesses in Birmingham and to start the discussion on what we collectively can do to bring about a change.
· Provide Black businesses with the tools and information needed to move them at least one step up the business development ladder.
Although the conference has grown and the plight of minority-owned businesses has improved in the past 20 years, the above conference goals are as relevant today as they were 20 years ago.
BPL: Twenty years later, how do you feel this conference has impacted attendees?
Dickerson: People have supported this conference in so many ways. Corporations sponsor, dynamic national and local speakers share knowledge and information and people come. I hear from all our constituents, and they share that this conference is something they enjoy, that they look forward to and that they benefit by attending.
BPL: What has been the key to the conference’s success?
Dickerson: I think we’ve been successful because we’ve been consistent. The conference has always been two days, during February, with good speakers and topics. We’ve stayed true to our beliefs that successful business ownership, like A G Gaston exemplified, is the key to building black wealth.
Jackson: I think the key to the success of the AGGC has to do with Bob and my partnership.
· We have stayed true to the initial mission of the conference.
· We respect the skills that each of us brings to the table. Bob raises the money. I manage the logistical part of the conference. And together we develop the program.
· We are committed to maintaining a conference culture that creates a sense of family among our attendees, our sponsors and our vendors. Everyone works together to make the conference the best it can be.
I think our partnership serves as an example of what Black businesses can do when you bring together the right people with the right skills with a strong commitment to a common goal. Together we have made it happen!
BPL: How has the conference grown over the years?
Bob: When we started we had one luncheon featuring one big name national speaker. For the past decade, we’ve hosted two luncheons with high-profile keynoters and three additional plenary sessions with the likes of Natalia Maderia Coefield and Nicholas Perkins.
Jackson: I like to think of the AGGC like a small business. We started out like most “mom & pop” entities, doing most of the work ourselves with the help of a good support team and vendor base. As the conference grew, we kept doing what we had always done.
Then one day, I realized that we were no longer that “mom & pop” entity but had grown to become a “real” business. And like most small businesses, doing things the same old way was no longer good enough.
So we stepped back and looked at running the conference from a more strategic perspective. We now combine what worked well from the past with new technologies and systems that propel businesses forward into the future. And like most successful small businesses, we are continually working to make the AGGC better.
BPL: What lessons can today’s entrepreneurs, both black and white, learn from Dr. Gaston?
Dickerson: Find a need and fill it. Gaston understood that succeeding in business, developing Green Power, was essential. He knew full well that it is difficult to help others if you need help yourself.
Jackson: Dr. Gaston’s “Recommendations for Success” Revisited (Below are updated versions of Dr. Gaston’s recommendations that are still relevant today)
1. Save a part of all you earn. Pay yourself first.
2. You are only as good as your reputation. Establishing a good reputation is only the start. Keeping a good reputation can make or break your business.
3. Remember that you are only as good as your staff, vendors and volunteers. If they do well, you do well. Treat them with respect and like you want to be treated and they always exceed your performance expectations.
4. Find a need and fill it. Successful businesses are founded on the needs of people.
5. Hire the best people you can. If you know more than they do, look for someone else. You want to hire someone that can teach you something new.
BPL: A.G. Gaston was named “Entrepreneur of the 20th Century by Black Enterprise. What must be done to help another A.G. Gaston emerge in metro Birmingham?
Dickerson: Several years ago, we pursued the idea that we could locate, incubate, or even create the next A G Gaston. We’ve invited speakers like Nicholas Perkins this year and like Michael V Roberts from years past, who run thriving enterprises. I believe it’s possible for other businessmen and women to reach the extraordinary heights that Gaston reached, and I look forward to knowing that it happened.
Jackson: The challenges that black businesses face today are much more difficult than during Gaston’s heyday, as they must compete to win over black customers against whites and companies globally through the Internet.
BPL: What closing advice can you offer them on how to take their business to the next level?
Dickerson: Stay the course. Know more than your competitors and out work them. Be smart with your money. Treat your employees right and with respect. Pay them well and expect them to outperform their pay. Get a small group of trusted advisors and keep the naysayers at bay. Put your customers first and find a need and fill it.
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